Westchester Biotech Project To Hold Innovation Symposium

From WBP: On June 12, the Westchester Biotech Project (WBP), a not-for-profit organization that brings together a global network to foster scientific research and collaboration, will present its Innovation in Research 2018 symposium hosted by Purchase College, SUNY. Leading scientists and entrepreneurs will discuss potentially life-saving medical developments, share expertise on where the industry is headed, and highlight one of the Hudson Valley’s fastest growing sectors.

According to Joanne Gere, WBP’s co-founder and executive director, speakers will report on developments in their diverse fields, notably the realities and possibilities of using marijuana as medicine; the financial potential for companies that target age-related illnesses; the importance of developing a clinical trial network throughout New York State; and the looming economic boon for biotech beyond health care.

Launched in 2017, WBP regularly convenes scientists and medical researchers across the Westchester region’s emerging biotechnology industry. “Researchers, engineers, and data scientists provide and validate every innovation, breakthrough, and lifesaving therapy," says Ms. Gere. "By focusing on their work and the surrounding ecosystem, we strive to help increase regional opportunity density and international influence."

The full-day symposium will feature cutting-edge research from scientists and physicians in the areas of medicine, disease and biotechnology. Business leaders, researchers, engineers, venture capitalists, academics and data scientists will attest to the region’s vibrant biotech cluster.

“The continued growth and success of biomedical progress relies on collaborations that cross borders and integrate different areas of expertise that might otherwise not come together,” says WBP co-founder and chair Michael Welling of Meridian Risk Management. “Bringing these communities together is the fastest and smartest way to create life-saving medications and fully tap into the power and potential of the region’s biotech community.”

Dr. Nir Barzilai, a global expert on the aging process, will be the keynote speaker. Dr. Barzilai directs the Institute for Aging Research at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and is a world-renowned expert on biochemistry and genetics who is leading an international effort to develop and approve treatments for age-related diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, dementia and heart disease. His talk will focus on the key to building biotech companies that target aging.

Other featured speakers include Sergei Petukhov, partner with Enso Ventures, a venture capital firm that invests in biotech companies; Karl Schmieder, author, expert in the application of synthetic biology and CEO of messagingLAB; Dianna E. Willis, associate director at Burke Neurological Institute; and Dr. Stephen Dahmer, chief medical officer at Vireo Health, which specializes in the creation and distribution of cannabis-based medical products as alternatives to opioids.

Dr. Barzilai is a founding member of CohBar, a biotech company on track for clinical trials in 2018. He is a former Israeli Army medical officer who directs the Longevity Genes Project, a genetics study of over 600 centenarians between the ages of 95 and 112 and their families. His work with the Longevity Genes Project is paving the way for creating healthy aging therapeutics that could prevent or delay age-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s.

“We have the potential to live a longer and healthier life,” says Dr. Barzilai, a Westchester resident, “and we are well on the way to realizing this promise.”

Other speakers and topics include:

· Dianna Willis, Ph.D., associate director, Burke Neurological Institute: As people are living longer with serious brain trauma, stroke and spinal chord injuries, Dr. Willis will discuss new life-enhancing treatments and remedies for people with chronic neurological challenges that were once insurmountable. Dr. Willis is also lab director of the Laboratory for Axonal and RNA Biology, co-director of the Center for Pain and Sensory Research, and an assistant professor of Neuroscience at the Brain and Mind Research Institute of Weill Cornell Medicine.

· Stephen Dahmer, M.D., chief medical officer at Vireo Health: As an expert in treating patients with cannabis-based medical products, Dahmer will delve into the benefits and challenges of integrating marijuana and cannabis products into high quality health care treatments. Dr. Dahmer is a board-certified family physician who has studied health and healing around the world. A fellow of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine, he examined the relationships between plants and people, working closely with diverse cultures and documenting their uses of plants. He was most recently assistant clinical professor of Family Medicine and Community Health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

· Sergei Petukhov, DVM, partner, Enso Ventures: Dr. Petukhov will provide a unique investor’s perspective on why some companies succeed while others fail, and the importance of finding emerging biotech companies that can help patients, and are strong targets for investment. Dr. Petukhov leads Enso's biotechnology investments, holding board positions at several bioscience companies. He has served as advisor to both investment funds and pharmaceutical companies, and worked and studied at The Rockefeller University, University of Edinburgh, University of Cambridge, Moscow 1st Medical Academy, and Moscow State Academy of Veterinary Medicine and Biotechnology.

· Karl Schmieder, CEO of messagingLAB: Co-author of “What’s Your Bio Strategy: How to Prepare Your Business for Synthetic Biology,” Mr. Schmieder will discuss economic opportunities in life sciences that extend beyond medicine and health care, such including manufacturing and fashion, among others. For his book, he interviewed entrepreneurs and innovators from Harvard University such as George Church, Ph.D., and industry innovators who are disrupting trillion-dollar industries to drive biotechnology forward.

The Westchester Biotech Project is a borderless nonprofit organization supporting cross-silo initiatives to enhance human health.Innovation in Research is the organization’s annual symposium for connecting the region’s science brain trust with resources for international impact. In addition to hosting many regional symposia, WBP is developing the Rare Disease Hub for international researchers.

Registration and more information are at www.westchesterbiotechproject.org.

Roughly 20 percent of New York State’s biotech workforce is located in Westchester County. The county is also home to a number of global biotechnology companies such as Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Acorda Therapeutics, ContraFect, Progenics Pharmaceuticals, Curemark and others, along with world-renowned medical institutions. In recent years, a biotech incubator was formed, and plans are in the works for the North 60, a multi-million square-foot biotechnology and research center adjacent to existing biotech companies, a medical center and a medical school.

"In light of existing academic, industry, and hospital resources, and developments such as the North 60, this is the perfect time to enhance connections across the region and the globe," says Ms. Gere.

Image Via WBP